Sacked NBC Today host Matt Lauer breaks silence on alleged 'inappropriate sexual behaviour'

Former "Today" show host Matt Lauer has broken his silence 24-hours after he was fired for “inappropriate sexual behaviour”.

Lauer's first public response to his firing was read by his former co-host, Savannah Guthrie, on the show where he had worked since 1994 before being fired.

 "I regret that my shame is now shared by the people I cherish dearly," Lauer said in the statement.

"Repairing the damage will take a lot of time and soul searching and I'm committed to beginning that effort. It is now my full-time job."

Lauer was fired after an NBC employee came forward on Monday to detail what NBC News chief Andrew Lack described as Lauer's "inappropriate sexual behaviour" that began at the Sochi Olympics in 2014.

Since then, NBC said two other women have come forward with complaints, with one telling The New York Times that Lauer had sexually assaulted her in his office in 2001.

An investigation by Variety magazine revealed a pattern of alleged salacious behaviour, including three women who said they had been sexually harassed by Lauer. All made their complaints anonymously.

Lauer said that some of what has been said about him is untrue or mischaracterised, "but there is enough truth in these stories to make me feel embarrassed and ashamed." He did not specify which allegations were true or untrue.

"The last two days have forced me to take a very hard look at my own troubling flaws," he said. "It's been humbling."

For the second day in a row, he was replaced by Hoda Kotb on the breakfast program, giving the show an all-female lead anchor team.

NBC is faced with the task of suddenly replacing the man who has been the most visible figure in morning television news, the most lucrative part of the network news business.

CBS has the same task, since "CBS This Morning" host Charlie Rose was fired last week for after several women he worked with detailed sexual misconduct charges.

The list of prominent men felled by misconduct allegations has seemed to grow by the day, especially since a pattern of sexual assault by Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein was revealed this fall.

In the media alone, Lauer joins a list that also includes his former NBC News colleague Mark Halperin, the late Fox News chief Roger Ailes, Fox News prime-time host Bill O'Reilly and National Public Radio newsroom chief Michael Oreskes.

In Australia, allegations against Burke’s Backyard host Don Burke surfaced, as well as allegations against actor Geoffrey Rush.

Hours after Lauer’s firing, Variety posted what it said was a two-month investigation that included dozens of interviews with current and former staffers who asked to remain anonymous.

Among other things, Variety reported allegations that Lauer once gave a colleague a sex toy with an explicit note about how he wanted to use it on her; that he exposed himself to another female co-worker; that he would question female producers about their sex lives; and that he would talk about which co-hosts he would like to sleep with.

NBC would not say whether he denied or admitted to any wrongdoing.

Lauer is married with three children. His statement mentioned the damage he had left behind "at NBC and at home."